Pennsylvania Enacts Legislation Allowing Representation by Non-Lawyers at Unemployment Compensation Hearings

Pennsylvania has enacted legislation allowing non-attorneys to represent employers in unemployment compensation hearings. The bill, SB 464, was signed into law by Governor Ed Rendel on June 15, 2005 and was passed in response to the case of Harkness v….

Pennsylvania has enacted legislation allowing non-attorneys to represent employers in unemployment compensation hearings. The bill, SB 464, was signed into law by Governor Ed Rendel on June 15, 2005 and was passed in response to the case of Harkness v. Unemployment Compensation Board of Review, No. 150 C.D. 2004 (Pa. Commw. Feb. 3, 2005) in which the court had held that corporations could not be represented by non-attorneys in administrative proceedings involving unemployment compensation claims. (See previous posts here and here discussing Harkness, and also this post from the Greater Valley Forge HR Law Link here.)

The Pennsylvania Bar Association had opposed the legislation.

Read more about the bill in a press release from the Pennsylvania Department of Labor & Industry.

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